The Assassins' Lament
by Shadow-Assassin
Summary: Someone is trying to start another war and Trowa seems to know more then he lets on. What happens when the gundam pilots are split apart by a secret one of their own has kept since before they even met? Parings: 01-Relena,02-Hilde,03-Catherin,04-?
1. Trouble's Brewing

Note: I don't own Gundam Wing!!! This message goes for the whole story... I would like to know if anyone wants me to put up a side fic like I do with most of my other stories. If you do want me to, please tell me that in a review. Thank you and don't forget to review! =^-^= You'll find out who the main character is in chapter 2 I think…****

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**The Assassins' Lament**

**Chapter One: Trouble's Brewing**

It was Christmas time and everyone was gathered to celebrate the first full year of peace between the earth and the colonies. Relena had finally convinced the three most reluctant of the Gundam Pilots to join in the festivities. Duo and Quatre had come willingly and were enjoying the party. As for Heero, Trowa and Wufei... Well they were off in their own little places brooding.

Heero sat in a corner watching the people dance. He was glad there was peace now but he felt useless now that the war was over. His only real skills were those needed for fighting. He had no skills that he could use in the new world. He sighed and leaned back on the chair crossing his arms as he often did.

"Would you like to dance?" Said a young woman as she put out her hand towards Heero. Heero looked up at her and all seemed to stop for several seconds as he took in her beauty. He'd seen her time and again but he still couldn't take in all the beauty that now stood before him. Her dark blond hair was done up in the usual fashion, straight with the usual braids coming from the front and tied up at the back.

"I don't dance," Heero replied calmly.

Relena glared at him, "Fine then, I'll find someone who _can_ dance."

"I never said I couldn't dance. I just said I don't dance," Heero replied.

"And that's because you can't," Relena challenges. She knew the young pilot well and knew that this was the only way to get him to do something he didn't wish to do. 

"Fine," Heero said getting up and taking her hand and leading her towards the dance floor. He gently placed one hand on her hip and took her hand in his free hand. She put her free hand on the back in his neck.

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Trowa was silently watching the stars out on the balcony. He preferred to be alone and the sweet silence of the night comforted him. After the war he'd found his place in the new world with his traveling circus friends. He enjoyed making people happy even though he could never be truly happy himself. 

"Hey, what are you thinking about?" a voice asked from behind him. He turned to see a young Arabian boy there smiling kindly. The boys blond hair seemed to light up the night sky. He was a gentle soul and could warm even the hardest of hearts with his friendship. 

"Nothing Quatre... Just enjoying the quiet," Trowa answered finally.

"The party's in there... not out here," Quatre smiled as he walked over and put his elbows on the railing and putting his head in his hands. 

"I'm not a party person," Trowa said still looking out at the shinning stars.

"You'd probably enjoy it if you were to actually try," Quatre said.

"I say if you have to try to be happy then it's not worth your time," Trowa said turning around and leaning on the railing looking over to the other pilot.

"Do you ever look on the bright side of things?" Quatre asked with a smile as he too turned to look at his friend.

"Bright side? What's that?" Trowa asked grinning slightly.

Quatre smile and laughed, "Come on now... Come have something to drink at least," He offered.

" Fine then... After that I'm going to head back home," Trowa said following his friend back into the building.

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Wufei sat at a table near the back. He was having the hardest time with the new world. He was a fighter and he knew that was all he'd ever be. The only place he felt he belonged was with the Preventers. At least then he was doing some real good. He eventually got up taking his coat and headed towards the exit hoping no one would see him leave.

"Hey! Not skipping out on us are you Wufei?" A friendly voice asked. 

"What does it mater to you? Go and have your fun. I'm going to train," Wufei said as he continued to walk. 

"Oh come on! You can't just leave in the middle of a party," The person said grabbing Wufei by the shoulder and swinging him around. 

Wufei glared at the young man before him. The young mans blue eyes were full of happiness and fun. The war hadn't really affected him as much as it had the rest of them. The young man brushed a strand of brown bangs from his face.

"Get lost Duo," Wufei said calmly.

"You're no fun," Duo said waving his friend away.

Wufei smirked at his victory and turned to walk out.

**************************************************************************

Just as Wufie was walking out a cried of pain came from the dance floor. He stopped and turned to see what was happening.

"Relena!" Heero shouted as Relena's limp body fell into his arms. Heero kneeled down and layed Relena on the dance floor. He took his hand out from behind her back only to see it drenched in Relena's blood. 

"She's been shot," Someone said.

Heero immediately got up and looked around searching for the unknown attacker. Trowa, who was just a ways off, was doing the same. Quatre kneeled beside Relena and took her hand feeling her pulse, "She's still alive. Whoever shot her missed her vital organs. She's in shock though. We need to get her to a doctor."

From the corner of his eye, Heero saw a figure run through the shadows towards the balcony. He looked over at Trowa and gave him a nod. Trowa immediately jumped into the air doing a back flip and landed in front of the balcony door. The figure stopped in his tracks in front of the young pilot. Trowa glared at the figure and was just about to grab his gun when the figure collapsed to the ground, "What?" Trowa said looking around. Heero and the other pilots, along with the other guests, all looked around in confusion.

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"Sorry... Partner, but rules are rules. No one lives to tell the tale," A man in a black outfit said as he looked down from his perch near the stairs. He backed up behind a pillar and looked down to see the fierce eyes of a young man he once new. He knew, however, that this young man was no longer on his side, but he also knew that the young man wouldn't come after him... Not yet at least. He smirked and turned jumping out the open window of the building. No one else saw him.

**************************************************************************

An hour or so later, the five pilots were sitting in a waiting room. Relena was in intensive care and they were all worried, though not all of them showed it.

"We all know that it wasn't just that one man who was after Relena. This is ridiculous. We should be out there finding that other attacker. Not sitting here and waiting for a doctor to tell us that the victim will be ok," Wufie said.

"We can't just leave her. She needs someone," Quatre said.

"Then why don't you stay here with her and the rest of us will go searching for the bad guy," Duo suggested.

"Duo's right... For once. You stay here and we will go and look for whoever's after Relena. We'll head to preventer headquarters. They should be able to help us figure out who's behind this," Heero said.

"Ok... Just be careful... You don't know what danger you might be getting yourselves into," Quatre said.

"We aren't weak... We can take care of ourselves," Wufie said as he turned and headed towards the door.

Duo and Trowa followed behind Wufie and Heero turned to Quatre, "If she wakes up while we're gone... Tell her we wish her well."

"I will Heero," Quatre smiled. 'Heero might seem heartless at times, but he has the biggest heart of all.' Quatre thought to himself.

Heero nodded to the young Arabian boy and turned, following the others out.


	2. Search For Trouble

Note: I don't own Gundam Wing!!! This message goes for the whole story... I would like to know if anyone wants me to put up a side fic like I do with most of my other stories. If you do want me to please tell me that in a review. Thank you and don't forget to review! =^-^=****

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**The Assassins' Lament**

**Chapter Two: Search For Trouble**

The gundam pilots, minus Quatre, soon reached the Preventers headquarters and finished explaining the incident to Noin and Sally Po.

"How are we suppose to find the people who want Relena dead? She is Relena Dorlan and Relena Peacecraft... Do you know how many people want her dead?" Noin said.

"The only thing we can do right now is go through the guest list and check everyone's background. I'm afraid that's all we can do right now unless someone can give us some kind of lead," Sally added.

"Let me go through the guest list then," Heero said.

"Ok," Noin nodded smiling slightly. 'Relena could always melt the coldest of hearts. Isn't that right Heero,' she thought to herself.

"What can the rest of us do?" Duo asked.

"Well... Why don't some of you head over to the scene of the crime and help out the people looking for evidence," Sally suggested, "And Wufie, can you go to the morgue and see if they've come up with anything on the dead assassin?" Sally asked.

"Yes ma'am," Wufie said bowing his head and turning to walk out.

"Ok... Are you coming with me Trowa?" Duo asked.

"No... I'm going to check something out here," Trowa answered.

"Umm... Ok," Duo shrugged then turned and headed out.

Heero walked out soon after with his laptop in hand.

"Bet you he'll be at it all night," Noin said.

"I wouldn't go against that," Sally replied.

Trowa sighed and also walked out of the room leaving the two women on their own.

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It was late at night and the other pilots had come back already. Quatre was back from the hospital with very little to update the others on. Wufie said the doctor at the morgue had no idea who the man was. It seemed that all files on him had been deleted some how. Duo had also come back empty handed. Heero had not yet found anything incriminating on any of the guests from the party. As for Trowa… well no one even knew what he'd been up to in the first place.

Trowa walked into the room were Heero was still hard at work, "You should really stop proving them right, " he said quietly.

"What are you doing up so late?" Heero asked the other boy.

"I could ask you the same thing... But we both know the answer to that... We both want to find the enemy..." Trowa replied.

"Yes..." Heero said his face looking grim.

"You should really get some sleep Heero... It's three in the morning... You need your rest," Trowa said.

"Trowa... I promised myself that I would protect Relena... and I failed. All I want to do now is find the people who hurt her and make them pay, " Heero said turning away from the other pilot.

"We will find them... I promise... But there is no way we'll find them tonight. Take a break Heero and let your mind rest. A fresh mind is always better then an overworked mind," Trowa advised.

"Where'd you learn that one? From a nursery rhyme?" Heero asked half heartedly as he continued to scroll through files on the computer.

"Actually... I read it in an old newspaper. It was a quote from a man who died shortly after... I believe his name was... Heero Yuy," Trowa said.

Heero stopped and looked at the other boy, "I give... Maybe you're right... I'm more use to Relena when I'm wide awake."

"That's better," Trowa said smiling slightly then looking back at the computer screen. He sighed as Heero turned the machine off and stood up.

They nodded to each other and walked off...

**************************************************************************

The next day the group decided to check up on Relena before continuing to work on the case.

"She still hasn't woken up I'm afraid, but I'm sure she will in just a bit," The doctor assured them.

The five pilots weren't aloud to go and see her since she was still in critical care.

"We might as well leave then... We're not doing her any good standing here," Duo said.

"I agree... Let's go," Wufie said.

Quatre looked over at Wufie curiously, "Are you afraid of hospitals?"

"Ha! Only weak minded fools are afraid of places of healing," Wufie said as he turned to walk out just as a nurse came by with a very large needle. Wufie cringed and backed up a bit as the nurse went by.

Duo sent a smirk towards Quatre and Quatre snickered nodding. The others then began to follow behind Wufie.

As they walked Trowa turned his gaze to a man who was just walking into the building. The man was wearing a black suit and had one hand in his pocket, "I'll meet you guys back at headquarters... There's something I forgot to do," Trowa said turning and walking away from his companions.

"Umm... Ok, see you there then," Quatre said.

**************************************************************************

The boy had seen him. The man in the black suit smirked as he continued to walk. He quickly noticed a door that said 'Morgue' and opened the door quickly running into the room. 

The room was dark and had the smell of rotting corpses and made your skin crawl as if you were the one dead and were being eaten alive by maggots and various other flesh eating insects.

The man smirked. This was just the kind of place he liked. 

Suddenly the door to the morgue opened and the young brown-haired boy walked in. His emerald green eyes pierced through the darkness of the room and landed on the black suited man, "Who are you and who sent you?" He asked.

"Who I am does not matter and you know right well who sent me, 01," The man said smirking once more.

Trowa glared at the man angrily, "What is Zeon after."

"The same thing you were after once..." The man said.

"Why can't they just leave things as they are now... Peaceful?" Trowa growled.

"Peace? Ha! This is only the silence before the storm. There is no such thing as... Peace. There is only rule and war," The man said.

"You're wrong... If Zeon stays out of this then we could be in peace for years to come," Trowa said.

"And what have you done with your life since the war ended? You've been reduced to entertaining little children," The man said nearly laughing.

"I chose to do that," Trowa countered.

"That's not all you've chosen... You've also chosen to end the life of a young woman... Now what was her name again?" The man said.

"You leave her alone!" Trowa growled grabbing the man by the collar and lifting him up off the ground and shoving him against the wall.

"I can't be responsible for anything that happens to the young lady," the man laughed.

Trowa dropped the man on his feet and glared at him, "What the hell do you want?"

"We need your help," The man said.

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Trowa returned to the Preventers headquarters several hours later. 

"Hey Trowa? Where were you?" Duo asked.

"Ya we were worried," Quatre added.

"You mean you were worried," Heero said as he continued to go through files on the computer.

"I was out..." Trowa said coldly then walked off.

"Huh? What's his problem? He looks like he's seen a ghost," Duo said.

"Maybe he took a glance at your face?" Wufie said as he flipped through a newspaper.

"Hey!" Duo shouted.

"What's this?" Wufie said looking at an article in the newspaper.

Duo snatched the paper from Wufie and began to read, "All over the earth and the colonies high ranking officials have been assassinated. People around the world are beginning to get weary of another war. Many remaining officials are being brought to safe houses where there will be the best security measures available. No one knows yet who is behind the attacks but police are investigating. Police are also warning citizens to avoid going outside if possible until further notice."

"Could this be linked to what happened to Relena?" Quatre asked.

Heero walked over and looked at the paper, "Here is our lead... We need to go to these places were people have been attacked and see what we can find."


	3. The Search For Answers

Note: I don't own Gundam Wing!!! This message goes for the whole story... Thank you and don't forget to review! =^-^=****

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**The Assassins' Lament**

**Chapter Three: The Search For Answers**

The gundam pilots had finally made it to Colony 05 where a man known as Mr. Damon Gavardo had been murdered. Gavardo had been a diplomat from the colony and it was a shock when people there found out of his death. The other pilots had convinced the silent Trowa to join them.

"So where do we start?" Duo asked looking around at the people who were staring at them uneasily. Seemed that the attacks were making people skittish. 

"The Gavardo residence," came a feminine voice from behind them. All but Trowa turned to see who it was but there was no one there.

"Huh? That's a bit creepy," Duo said.

"Should we go there or what?" Quatre asked.

"I don't know. It could be a trap," Heero said, "But it's the only lead we have."

"Then we're going?" Duo asked.

"Yes," Heero said as he walked off.

"Do you even know where it is?" Wufei asked.

"It's in the east part of the colony," Trowa sighed standing with his arms crossed.

"Great... Lets go then," Duo said.

The group walked in silence towards their intended destination. They soon found themselves in a part of the colony where the only houses were mansions. They looked around for the mansion that would belong to Damon. They soon found a mansion with a sign on the gate saying Gavardo Residence. They looked at each other then Quatre pressed the button on the control panel next to the gate. 

"Gavardo residence. How may I help you," Came a voice from the speaker on the control panel. 

"Hello... We are here to speak with Mrs. Gavardo about the resent death of her husband," Quatre said.

"May I ask who's speaking?" the voice asked.

"Quatre Winner," he replied.

There was silence for several minutes then the voice returned, "Please come in."

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The five gundam pilots talked to Mrs. Gavardo who told them that she had no idea who killed her husband but was sure they had to be working for someone who wanted to demolish peace. The group thanked her and left heading for where they could get more information on another victim known as Talitha Kidono. They went there and got pretty much the same answer. They then went to another place then another. No one knew who was causing these murders or who would want to kill those victims. 

"This is getting us nowhere," Duo complained.

"Stop your complaining. We'll find something. I know it," Heero said clenching his fists.

"Admit it Heero. You have no idea where to go from here," Trowa said calmly as he turned putting his hands in his pockets and walked away.

Heero narrowed his eyes but did nothing.

"What's up with him?" Duo asked.

"I don't know but I'm going to find out," Quatre said running up to his friend, "Trowa... What's wrong?"

"Nothing. I just find this search useless, that's all," Trowa said not looking at his friend.

"You can't just give up," Quatre said.

"Watch me," Trowa replied walking away.

Quatre stood there confused and shocked, not sure what to make of all this. He watched as his friend walked out of sight.

"Something doesn't feel right here," Heero said walking up beside Quatre, "And I think Trowa knows more then he's letting on."

"Forget about him. We've still got one more place to go to," Wufei said.

"Right. Lets go," Heero said turning and walking away with the others following close behind.

________________________________________________________________________

They headed for colony L3 where a man named Lucas Tyanogy was murdered. They got there and are invited in immediately.

"We'd like to ask you some questions about your father Ms. Tyanogy," Quatre started.

"Of course. What do you need to know?" she asked.

"Who would want to murder him?" Heero asked.

"I'm not sure. I'm so very..."

Just as she was about to say she was sorry, there was a loud explosion and the windows imploded, scattering shards of glass in all directions. The gundam pilots and Lucas' daughter were thrown backwards by the blast. They slowly got up covered in bits of glass and other debris.

"What was that?" Heero asked as he slowly picked himself up off the ground backing away from where the attack had come from. He held his right arm as blood driped from it onto the ground.

"Are you ok?" Duo asked the young woman as he helped her to her feet and limped away from what had been the front of the house.

"What is going on?" she asked shocked and shaking in fear.

Wufei pushed a chair off of him and gots up. He placed his hand on his aching forehead and felt the wetness. He took his hand away examining it. Blood dripped from his fingers as his forehead bled from a large gash.

Quatre went to stand up but yelped as pain rushed through his chest area. He looked at his chest and put his hand on the piece of glass that had embedded itself in his gut. He closed his eyes and yanked it out quickly.

"Quatre?" Duo said looking over to his comrade. He saw the blood and ran to his friend's side. He quickly ripped a piece of his shirt and places it on the wound.

"I'm ok," Quatre insised.

"Tell that to the hole in your stomach," Duo said narrowing his eyes as he turned and walked towards the front of the house.

"Can you look after him?" Heero asked the young lady. She nodded and he and Wufei followed Duo to the front of the house. They slowly peeked out to see if anything or anyone was there.

"There's nothing... Nothing at all... Where the heck did that blast come from?" Duo asked.

"Let's not find out. We're getting out of here now," Heero said.

________________________________________________________________________

"I'm sorry but you can't go in," the nurse said for the fifth time. 

The three remaining pilots were at the hospital trying to go in to see Quatre.

"He's our friend," Duo said.

"I don't care if he's your son... You aren't going in," the nurse said.

Duo went to says something but stopped and turned away going and sitting down in the waiting room. The other two pilots glared at the nurse then turned and join Duo.

"Weak female's," Wufei muttered.

"Stop your bellyaching," Duo said.

Heero narrowed his eyes as a young girl he recognized walked towards them. The girl's short dark blue hair blew in the wind she created as she walked, "What are you doing here?"

"I'm here to see if Duo's friend is ok," the girl said sitting next to the usually happy pilot.

"Nice to see you Hilde," Duo smiled slightly.

Hilde smiled back, "Is he ok?"

"We don't know yet... He really got it bad... Whoever coursed that explosion better hope we don't find em... They're gonna wish they were dead if we do," Duo said clenching his fists.

Hilde turned away, "I'm sorry for your friend Duo... I really hope he makes it..."

"Don't worry about him... He's a Gundam Pilot and everyone knows Gundam Pilots never give up," Duo replied.

Heero and Wufei nodded and Hilde looked over to Duo and smiled.

"Think they'd at least let us go and see Relena?" Heero asked looking at the ground.

"Maybe... She should be ok by now," Duo said.

The three gundam pilots got up and headed towards the nurse. When Duo noticed that Hilde didn't come with them he turned back... but she was already gone, "You guys see where Hilde went?"

"No," Heero said then turns to the nurse, "We'd like to see Relena Peacecraft... Please."

"Whoa... He said please," Duo smirked.

Heero turned and glared at the other pilot then turned back at the nurse.

"You may go in and see her... She is in room 245," the nurse said.

"Thank you," Duo said then the three of them headed towards the room Relena was in. 

Heero slowly opened the door and looked in. Relena was lying on the bed sleeping peacefully.

Duo nudged Wufei and they turned and walk away. Heero looked back at them and glared at them then he walked into the room. He looked at the sleeping Relena and pulled up a chair sitting next to her.

"I could have done something... It's all my fault... If I hadn't been thinking about myself then I would have been able to save you from this pain," he said taking her hand in his, "I'm so very sorry... It's all my fault... Just like the death of all those people so long ago... That little girl," he placed her hand by her side and got up walking over to the window. He looked out seeing a vision of that day in the clear glass... The little girl and her puppy... The explosion he'd caused... The fire spreading to the adjacent building... The ashes... The Teddy bear... The dead puppy... So much sadness he'd caused because he wasn't careful... He turned away from the vision and clenched his fists, "I promise you I will find whoever did this and stop them... I will kill them," and with that he turned and walked out of the room and out of the hospital.


	4. Sadness & Lies

Note: I don't own Gundam Wing!!! This message goes for the whole story... Thank you and don't forget to review! =^-^=****

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**The Assassins' Lament**

Chapter Four: Sadness And Lies 

Several figures walk into a dark conference like room. Another figure sitting at the head of the table turns his chair towards them.

"You have done well my assassins," the man said.

"We're done… Now let us leave," a male voice said.

"You're not finished yet," the man said.

"What… Yes we are…" a female voice growled.

"You have… at least… one more mission to fulfill," the man said.

"At least?! No! We are not your lapdogs!" the same female voice shouted. 

"Hold your tongue girl or I will have it cut off," the man growled.

"Forgive her sir… She's just a bit… upset," the male voice said.

"You should keep your comrades under control Wolf… or you will find yourself fighting alone," the man said.

"Yes sir," he nodded slightly.

"What is the new mission sir?" came a different female voice.

The man smirked, "It is time to rid the world of Heero Yuy… again."

All three of the figures turned away from the man.

"Look at me when I'm speaking to you," the man growled.

All three turned to look at the man quickly.

"Sir… It… It will be done…" the male voice said.

"See that it is Wolf… Remember what is at stake here," the man said.

The three nodded.

"You are dismissed. You are to head out right away for this mission," the man explained.

"Yes sir," the three said in unison as they turned to leave.

"Falcra," the man said.

The girl who'd spoken the least turned to the man, "Yes sir?"

The man threw her a silencer, "If they turn on us… kill them."

The girl nodded, "As you wish sir."

She walked out and joined the others showing them the gun, "I was ordered to kill you if you turned traitor."

"Will you?" the boy asked.

The girl looked hurt almost, "I can't believe you'd even ask that."

The boy smiled slightly, "Just a question… Lets get this over with."

The two girls nodded to him.

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The gundam pilots sat at Preventers headquarters still trying to figure out what to do next. Duo paced around the room while Wufei and Heero went through newspapers and the Internet looking for clues.

Trowa walked in several minutes later and the three pilots glared at him.

"Huh?" Trowa said looking at all of them, "What's wrong?"

"Thanks for nothing Trowa," Duo said in a harsh voice.

Trowa looked a bit shocked at the words but said nothing as he shook his head and headed for the door.

"Quatre's in the hospital," Heero said.

Trowa turned quickly too look at the other pilot, "What? What do you mean?"

"There was an explosion… He was injured badly," Heero explained.

Trowa looked away from them then walked out quickly. Heero got up and followed him.

"Trowa," he said as he walked towards the other boy.

Trowa turned to look at Heero, "What is it?"

"Tell me what you know about all this," Heero said as they both stopped in the middle of the hall.

"I don't know anything… I know about as much as you do Heero," Trowa answered.

"This is serious Trowa… People are dying… Our friends are dying," Heero said.

"I have nothing to tell you," he insisted.

"Bull shit!" Heero growled as he angrily shoved the other pilot to the wall by the neck.

"I don't know anything about the assassinations, Heero," Trowa repeated.

"Heero! Leave him alone!" Duo said as he ran out of the room to see what was going on.

Heero glared at the pilot then let him go and walked away.

"You ok?" Duo asked.

"I'm fine," Trowa said walking the other way.

Duo sighed, "This "war" is sending even the calmest of soldiers off the deep end."

Duo headed back into the room where Wufei was still working and Heero had returned to working.

Trowa sighed as he walked down the halls.

"I thought they'd never leave," came a voice.

Trowa looked behind him then looked above him just as a figure fell from the ceiling.

"You ok? That Heero's sure a brute isn't he," the figure said brushing herself off.

"He's harmless," Trowa said in a calm voice.

"That's probably what he says about you," the girl winked as she brushed her blond hair aside.

"Yes… but we both know that's not true," he said looking at the ground.

"Thinking about Quatre again?" the girl asked.

"Yes… He's in the hospital and it's all my fault," he said.

"At least he's still got a chance… you know what would have happened if we hadn't done what we did," she said putting a hand on his shoulder.

"I know but it still doesn't make it right," he said.

"I feel so heartless… I should be more upset about this then I am," she said.

"You have a big heart… You just hide it because of all you've been through," he said.

"There you go again… You and your little speeches," she smirked.

Trowa just sighed.

"I can't wait till this is all over," the girl admitted.

"Neither can I," he replied, "Heero really thinks I know more then I'm telling them… am I that transparent?"

"No you're not… Heero's just high strung at the moment… He's worried that he won't be able to protect the earth again like he did during the other war," the girl said.

"Maybe… But I'm going to have to be extra careful or I'm going to become suspect number one," he sighed.

The girl nodded.

"You should get out of here before someone sees you," Trowa said.

"Let them. It's not like they could ever catch me anyway," the girl smirked as the two turned a corner and she prepared to "disappear".

"Dorothy…" Trowa said all of a sudden.

"Yes?" she asked looking over at him.

"Be careful," he said in an unusually gentle voice.

"Always," she smiled as she jumped through an open window and disappeared.

Trowa smiled to himself as he continued down the hallway.

**********************************************************************

The next day the group headed back to the hospital to see Quatre and Relena. The nurse said that Relena was awake and doing fine.

The group decided to go see Relena first.

They walked in and she looked over at them and smiled, "You came."

Duo looked around in awe at all the flowers and gifts and cards that she'd gotten from people, "You are popular aren't you?"

Relena sighed, "Yes… I suppose so… tell me… What is going on? I've heard that there is a crisis of some kind."

"It's nothing to worry about… There have been a few assassinations but we have it under control," Heero said trying to not to worry her.

"Good…" she said not quite believing him.

"I'm going to see Quatre," Trowa said.

The others nodded.

Relena looked at them a bit confused, "Where is Quatre?"

"He was hurt… Nothing too serious though," Heero lied.

"Tell him to get better for me then," Relena said kindheartedly.

Trowa nodded then walked out. The others stayed there for a bit with Relena.

Trowa walked down the hall to the room, the nurse had told him what room Quatre was in. He sighed and knocked once.

"Come in," came the voice from inside.

Trowa opened the door and walked in. He looked Quatre over sadly then sat down beside him, "How you feeling?"

"I've been better," he smiled, "I'm fine. How is everything going with the search for the assassins?"

"Not good. We don't know where to look anymore," Trowa said.

"I'm sure you'll find something… It just takes time," Quatre said. He looked at Trowa's face then asked, "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine… I just feel responsible for this… If I'd been there maybe I could have gotten you out of there in time," Trowa said.

"Trowa… There is no way you could have known that this was going to happen," Quatre said.

"Maybe… But I still think I should have been there to help you guys… I'm a Preventer… I shouldn't have left in the middle of a mission," he said.

"People make mistakes… It's not your fault that I got hurt… They may call you the perfect soldier but in truth no one is perfect… The one that is at fault is whoever caused the explosion," Quatre said.

Trowa looked away and sighed, "You're right," he said as he clenched his hands into fists.

A second or so later there was another knock on the door.

"Come in," Quatre said.

The other pilots walked in.

"Hey buddy… How you feeling?" Duo asked.

"I'm ok," Quatre said, "It's nice to see you all here."

"It's nice to see that you're ok," Duo replied.

"You better get well soon so you can come and help us," Wufei said as he smiled slightly.

"I'm trying," Quatre said.

The group talked for a while with Trowa staying fairly quiet as usual. Quatre gave them a few ideas as to what they could do to find the assassins and called up his company to get them to help out as well. The group left after about two hours and headed back to the Preventers base. They'd all decided to stay there while they worked on this mission.


	5. Right And Wrong

Note: I don't own Gundam Wing!!! This message goes for the whole story... Thank you and don't forget to review! =-=****

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The Assassins' Lament Chapter Five: Right And Wrong 

Duo headed to his second job the next day at the junkyard. He wasn't really supposed to but he needed to get his mind off of all the terrorism and killings.

Hilde was already there waiting for him since he'd called her. However, she didn't look too cheery.

"You ok Hilde?" Duo asked as he walked up to her.

She immediately put on a fake smile, "Course I'm ok. Why wouldn't I be?"

Duo gave her an odd look then shook his head, "Lets get to work."

"Right," she replied with a smile.

The two went to work on their usual tasks till Hilde looked over to Duo and asked, "… So Duo… How are Relena and Quatre doing?"

"They're going to be just fine. They're both up and Relena's going home today. I'm gonna leave early to go and greet her with the others and bring her home," Duo explained.

"Mind if I come?" Hilde asked, "Relena really is a great person and I'd like to show my support. I only met her a few times but I really feel close to her."

Duo smiled, "Of course you can come."

"Great!" Hilde beamed.

Duo continued to work but couldn't stop wondering about the way Hilde had been acting for the past few days. She'd been more distant then ever and seemed to be hiding something.

Soon enough, however, Duo brushed the thought out of his mind. Hilde was one person in this world he could trust… Or so he thought.

Heero woke up early that morning. He'd been up late that night thinking about what he'd said to Trowa and realised that he'd once again jumped to conclusions. He wasn't thinking straight and it was affecting his performance as a Preventer.

He decided to apologise to Trowa for his actions the other day. Unfortunately Trowa had gone off early that morning for a ride. He would be back shortly though, so Heero just waited by the entrance of the Preventer's HQ.

The sound of a motor soon reached his ears and he lifted his head to see the other Gundam Pilot drive up on his black motorcycle. He parked and got off then walked towards the entrance where Heero was waiting. Heero stepped out and looked the other boy in the eyes, "Can I talk to you for a second?"

Trowa nodded calmly, "Something wrong?"

"No," Heero replied as he walked away from the building.

Trowa followed quietly, wondering what Heero would want to speak with him about and secretly worrying that Heero had somehow figured out how much he was tangled in this whole conspiracy.

"I'm sorry," Heero said suddenly.

Trowa gave him a shocked look. An apology was definitely not what he was expecting.

"I shouldn't have jumped to conclusions the way I did. I just want to end this all before we have another war on our hands," Heero explained.

Trowa though to himself, 'But there's nothing to forgive…' but said nothing to the other pilot.

Heero looked at the other boys face starting to have second thoughts about the green-eyed boys innocence.

"Anyone can make a mistake, Heero. There is not one person on this planet that is perfect," Trowa said calmly, more to himself then to Heero.

Heero immediately brushed the thought of Trowa being a traitor aside and nodded to him, "You're right."

The two then walked back towards headquarters in silence, both left to their own thoughts.

Evening came and the pilots and other people and even the press headed to the Hospital by their own means. Relena looked great. She looked almost completely healed though she needed someone to be there by her side in case she fell.

Heero smiled as he walked up. She looked more beautiful then ever. At that thought he looked away. Why was he thinking of her this way? All he'd ever wanted to do was protect her… Just keep her safe… Nothing more…

Duo and Hilde walked up hand in hand. The two had become extremely close though they hadn't yet admitted their feelings to each other. Duo smiled at Relena and waved.

Relena smiled back and waved as Noin helped her down the hospital stairs, "Wow… Thank you all for coming," Relena said looking around at all the people.

Press people began to take pictures and ask questions like, "Do you have any idea who could have done this?" and "What will you do if this leads to another war?"

The gundam pilots then stepped up.

"Back off… Let her breathe," Duo said with a sigh.

"Please… Miss Dorlan needs her rest. I'm sure she'll give some interviews when she's feeling better," Noin said.

The press soon died down and all that was left were the preventers and other people who "really" cared about Relena.

"Miss Relena… It's so good to see you well again," Dorothy said as she walked up to Relena.

"Hello Dorothy. It's good to see you," Relena smiled slightly.

Dorothy smiled then sighed slightly, "I'd like to stay longer Miss Relena but I'm afraid I have other things to attend to right now."

"Thanks for coming Dorothy," Relena said with a gentle smile.

Dorothy bowed slightly then turned and walked away. Two sets of eyes watched her as she left then turned to each other with a nod.

Trowa quietly turned and walked away trying not to be noticed. Heero turned to look over at him as he walked away with his hands in his pockets, "Where are you going Trowa?"

"I'm a lousy party guest. You guys go have fun. I'm going to go do some more research on these terrorists back at HQ," Trowa said calmly turning to Heero.

"Good luck finding anything," Heero said then turned back to Relena who was walking his way. He still had a gut feeling that Trowa was hiding something but he trusted the other pilot enough to believe he'd tell him if something was wrong.

"Hey Duo… I have something I forgot to do. Can you give my best wishes to Relena. I really hate to walk out on her but I really need to get this done," Hilde said.

"Of course Hilde. What's so important anyway?" Duo asked.

"Just stuff… You know," Hilde said then turned and walked away.

Trowa and Hilde both arrived at the same place from different directions. Dorothy stood there with her head lowered, "I can't stand this anymore. Are we really doing the right thing? Standing by and watching it all happened was bad enough, but now we're helping them. Is it right for us to play god like we are?"

They both walked up to her and each put a hand on one of her shoulders, "What is right anymore? All we're trying to do is protect those we care about. Besides… If we were playing god then we would have much more of a choice," Hilde said calmly but her two companions could tell she was worried.

"Ya… But should we really be doing that? The lives of the many for the few? Shouldn't we be trying to save more people?" Dorothy asked looking Hilde in the eyes.

"Maybe, but I don't know if I can do that… I couldn't put her in danger like that," Trowa said.

"I know 'her' well enough to believe that she'd rather die then live knowing her death could have saved the world and so many innocent lives," Dorothy said.

Trowa turned away, his hand going to the locket hidden under his shirt. He gently took it out and opened it examining the picture in held within it. A picture of a very young boy and girl watched him from within the locket. The young girls bright blue eyes seeming to pierce the darkness he felt within his soul. Her deep brown hair cut short and wavy. She held the young boy close to her in a caring embrace. His green eyes full of life and happiness with his brown haircut short fully showing his facial features.

Dorothy turned to him and put a hand on his shoulder like he'd done her, "Maybe it's time to do the right thing. The thing we've known to be right for over four years now."

Hilde also went to the locket around her neck, which was also hidden from the world, "You're right, they would want it this way. All of them."

Dorothy nodded as she took her own locket from her neck, "It's time to fight back."

"They should have realised their mistake from the beginning. They gave us the power and now we can use it against them," Trowa said as he clenched his fist around the locket and narrowed his eyes.

"Where do we start?" Hilde asked looking at the other two.

"We're going to pay old Z a little visit," Trowa said looking up at the sky.


	6. Infiltration

Note: I don't own Gundam Wing!!! This message goes for the whole story... Thank you and don't forget to review! =^-^=****

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The Assassins' Lament Chapter Six: Infiltration 

Three shadowy figures crept silently through the night. Not a noise was heard from them. It was as if they didn't even breathe. They were all dressed in tight black clothing that made for easy movement. Each had a light brown pouch on a belt around their waists. 

The figures stopped by a fence that travelled all around the area. The three examined the area carefully assessing their various options. There were few trees in the area to climb so the figures had to find another way to infiltrate the property. If they weren't careful they would set off the security protocol.

One kneeled down slightly and motioned to another to climb on his shoulders. As ordered the other figure climbed onto his shoulders and then lifted herself so that she was standing on his shoulders. She then motioned to the third figure who nodded and lowered herself to the ground. She then used her legs to propel herself into the air and into the open hands of the top figure. 

Soon enough the third figure was once again propelled into the air and over the fence. She flew over the security devices and landed safely on the other side with a roll landing on one knee. She then got up and nodded to the other two and quietly snuck off. 

The other two figures nodded to each other and headed quietly around the edge of the fenced in property to the chosen location. They got there and quietly hid behind a nearby bush watching the guards at the gate. 

Soon enough something distracted the guards and they took out their guns and headed in the direction of the distraction. The two figures nodded to each other and took out their own guns just in case. They slowly crept out of their hiding place and headed for the gate. A second later the third figure arrived at the gate and two men could be seen around the corner lying on the ground. 

The third figure went into the guard station and with a flick of a button the gate opened up for her two comrades. The two walked in quietly and the gate was once again closed. The three then dragged the two figures back into the guard station and propped them up so they looked like they were still on duty.

After that was done the three quietly headed towards the building. Close to the wall they headed around the property looking for a safe way in.

They soon came to a wall with several windows on it. The figure that seemed to be the leader took out a very thin looking rope out of the pouch at his side. The rope had metal part, which he opened to form a hook. With only a single swing the rope flew into the air and latched onto a windowsill. A tug on the rope told them that it would be safe to climb.

The third figure went up first then the second then the leader went up last. They were quick and quiet as they went up the rope and onto the windowsill. The third figure took a small device from her pouch and opened it up. She placed it against the window. A small suction cup on the device held it to the glass as a metal part was gently brought around cutting into the window. The figure then took the circle of glass and handed it over to the other female figure. She then placed her arm slowly through the hole and undid the latch. She turned to her partners and nodded as she slowly opened the window.

The three silently entered the room and examined the area carefully. It was dark but the three could easily see the room was empty and had been for some time now. There was a thin layer of dust on the furniture around the room. It looked like an old conference room of some sort. There was a long rectangle table with about twenty chairs set around it. It made one wonder why it was no longer in use.

The three then headed for the door with guns at the ready. The two girls stayed back with guns pointed at the door as their leader began to turn the doorknob. He stopped suddenly, however, when he heard a voice.

"He is almost ready but the others need far more training," one voice said.

"Then train them harder and more often. They will stay awake until they are fit to take on a mission of their own. As for zero four. We will send him on his first mission tomorrow. Is that clear?" a harsh and demanding male voice said.

"Yes sir," the other voice replied.

"You are dismissed," the more demanding voice said.

The three figures looked at each other as they heard two sets footsteps going down the hallway in different directions. The leader nodded to the other two when the footsteps subsided. They nodded and held their guns tightly as he opened the door quickly. No one was there. 

He nodded and the three looked around the hallway and stepped out quietly. He then motioned for them to go separate ways and the third figure went one way and the other two went the other way down the hall.

The two figures soon separated as they reached another hallway. One went one way and the other went the other way. Each of them was now on their own but that was how they liked it. They'd been trained both as a team and as single operatives. They each knew what needed to be done and how to go about it. They each had their own mission.

*********************************************

The third figure walked towards the room she knew as the guardroom. She got there with no trouble, which made her weary. However, she knew what needed to be done and she wasn't going to let a little fear get in her way. She took a deep breath, something she'd never do in front of her two comrades and she didn't like them to think her weak. She then knocked on the door.

She heard footsteps heading towards the door and she brought up her gun and readied herself. 

The door opened and there was a single shot fired. The man at the door fell to the ground with a bullet hole in the middle of his forehead. Blood began to form a pool around his body as the other men in the room looked on in horror. They were stunned and didn't quite know that to do. 

One man suddenly gasped, "It's her! Shadow Assassin Zero three! Falcra!"

"Traitor!" another one yelled, "She'd sided with the resistance!"

Another man suddenly jumped at the alarm system at the side of the room. The figure fired once again but it was too late. He'd pulled the alarm and it began to blare. The figure then smirked slightly and she turned and took off down the hallway. The men who'd been in the room soon filed out and ran after her.

"Quite a good distraction if I do say so myself," she said to herself as she ran.

*******************************************

"The alarm… Perfect timing," the other figure whispered to herself as several guards who'd been heading her way ran the other way at the first sign of trouble. She smirked as she headed for the door that would lead to the control room. She brought up her own gun and took out her security pass hoping it would still work. She put it in the machine but nothing happened. She sighed and put her pass back in her pouch taking out the pass she'd stolen from one of the men at the guard station.

She slashed it through and the door opened. She held her gun at the ready but no one was there to get in her way. They'd all left to stop the intruder it seemed.

"You'd think these people would be a little smarter. After all they are the ones that created us. They know our potential as threats," she said to herself as she closed the door and headed to the control panel. She began typing on the panel and various things came up. She placed a disk in the computer consol and pressed a button. 

The words "Downloading" appeared on the screen and the blond figure smirked. Soon enough the words "Download Complete" appeared and she took the disk from the computer and placed it in her pouch.

She once again began to type and things appeared on the screen. Soon the words "Self-Destruction Password" appeared on the screen.

"Everything needs a password these days," the girl muttered to herself, "Zeon Rules?" 

She typed it in but the response "Password Not Accepted" appeared on the screen.

"Damn… Shadow Assassin?" she said typing again but to no avail.

"It won't work my dear," came a voice suddenly. 

The figure turned quickly eyes wide. She hadn't even heard the door open, but maybe that was because they hadn't used the door. She thought as she noticed an open panel on the farthest wall. She clenched her fists for being so stupid. She should have been paying more attention to her surroundings.

A man stood before her with several guards. The man looked about 50 or so years of age. Each guard had a deadly gun pointed in her direction. She glared at the man but said nothing as he stepped closer.

"You should never have betrayed us Cheetara. I will give you one last chance. Do as I wish and no one gets hurt," the man said coming just inches from her. He placed his hand under her chin and smiled to her slightly, "There are very few choices and you know it."

She stepped back and his hand fell gently to his side. If looks could kill this man would have already gone through over a thousand lives. She hated him and she wasn't afraid to show it. She suddenly and quickly brought her wrist to her mouth revealing a watch. She quickly pressed a button on it, "We've got trouble guys! Get out of her…"

Her words were stopped as a man hit her in the back of the head nearly knocking her unconscious. Her sight went blurry but she was just glad that she'd been able to get her message to the others.

"I never liked your attitude. Take her away and capture the other two," the man said as two other guards walked up to Cheetara grabbing her and handcuffing her.

She growled slightly as they dragged her away.

************************************************

"Cheetara? Cheetara!" their leader yelled into his own watch, "No… Dorothy."

The closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He put his watch back to his mouth, "Get out of here Falcra," he said in a calm voice, "I'll meet you at Preventers Headquarters."

A voice came from the other end, "I know you and I'm not letting you get yourself hurt. I'm staying to help. We'll get her out of here together. We're a team remember?"

"No… Get out of here… Someone needs to warn the Preventers… Someone needs to tell them what's happening. Someone needs to protect our families," he said. His voice wavered at the last part. Family… If that was really what it could be called. His "family" didn't even know he was alive. Nor did his comrades' families know they were alive. They'd always been watching over them in secret. Protecting them the only way they knew how. Protecting them from the truth.

"Be careful… I want to see the two of you alive again. Don't go getting yourself killed," the voice on the other line said.

"I won't… I promise," he replied quietly. With that the line became dead.

***********************************************

((Extra long one! YAY! I'm kinda thinking about separating the story now… I have two ideas from this point on… There is the REALLY angsty stuff then the not so angsty stuff… Tell me if you want me to write both))


	7. The Escape

Note: I don't own Gundam Wing!!! This message goes for the whole story... Thank you and don't forget to review! =-=****

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The Assassins' Lament Chapter Seven: The Escape 

'Be careful Wolf…" Falcra said as she continued to run. She was still being followed but she dared not look back. Wolf had told her to get out of there and by god she would. She changed directions going down one hall then quickly switching to another in a feeble attempt at loosing her pursuers. Her legs were beginning to get tired but she wouldn't stop for anything. If she stopped then she would surely be dead. She was trained for this and she knew what to do and how to do it. She'd been through worse many times before and as she ran she let the memories invade her thoughts…

(FLASH)

"Let me go!!!" The small child shouted from the back of a van. She was being held by a tall brown haired woman as she flailed around madly. The woman seemed quite unimpressed.

"Why does he insist on getting toddlers?" the woman asks, "At four they can barely talk properly."

The little girl kicked her in the face angrily, "PUT ME DOWN!"

"That's it… I've had it! I'm going to…" the woman started.

"We're here. Cool your jets Kaisha," the man driving said.

"Hurry up and grab this brat before I decide to throw her through the window.

The man sighed and walked to the back of the van opening it up and grabbing the kid from "Kaisha". The child showed her anger by kicking him in the face. The woman laughed as she walked away.

"Kaisha… Where are you going?" the man asks.

"You seem to have it all under control. Have fun" she said as she continued to walk.

Several minutes later the man shoved the tiny child into a dark, damp room and closed the door locking it behind him. The small girl looked around at the dark room and began to cry.

"Hey… Don't cry… That won't do no good," came a voice from the corner. The little girl looked up and backed herself against the wall. There she curled up into a ball and began to cry again.

"We won't hurt you… We're friends," came another voice.

"Go away," she sobbed.

"Where we gonna go? We're all stuck here," the first voice said as someone walked out of the shadows at the back of the room. It was a young boy about her age. He had brown hair and emerald green eyes. He seemed nice enough.

"Who are you?" she asked.

"My names Triton," the young boy says.

"And I'm Dillia," comes another voice as a young girl comes out of the shadows. She had long blond hair and light blue eyes.

"I'm Hillarin," the young girl said quietly.

"Welcome to your new home Hillarin," the boy said as he reached out his hand to help her up.

She sobbed at the words but took his hand. He lifted her up and smiled. The other girl smiled as well.

(FLASH)

The little girl, only six years of age, running through, what looked like a desert. No cover, no way to hide your tracks. She could hear the sandy footsteps behind her. They were getting closer. The sand was weighing her down but it didn't seem to be weighing her pursuers down much. She growled slightly and pushed herself forward. She wasn't one to give in. She pushed the pain and the breathlessness into the back of her mind ignoring everything but the urge to get away.

"You can't run forever kid. Fight us and get it over with before you run out of energy to fight," came a voice from behind her. She closed her eyes. She didn't want to fight. She didn't want to hurt anyone. She just wanted to be left alone… She just wanted to go home.

She kept running trying to send the thought of home to the back of her mind. It didn't work. She wanted so badly to go home. Home to see her parents and her sister. She just wanted to go home and see her family. The family she loved.

She was thrown out of her thoughts as someone from behind her jumped and grabbed her around the waist dragging her to the sandy ground below. She yelped then pushed her head out of the dirt spitting out sand as she did so. The man that had dragged her down was still on top of her. He grabbed her by the wrists as he got up and dragged her back to her feet roughly.

"Fight," another man said as he glared at her. The other man let her arms go and she backed up a bit. She shook her head from side to side and closed her eyes. The man growled at her. She felt something hit her from behind and she fell to her knees. She whimpered slightly as she opened her eyes. The four men that had been chasing her were now in a circle around her.

"Get up and fight," one of them said.

"NO!" she shrieked. That was the last thing she had the chance to say. This time they didn't stop to repeat their request. She soon lost consciousness.

(FLASH)

The same young girl, about ten or so this time. She waited quietly on the balcony of a large building, waiting… waiting for the moment… waiting for her cue. She watched as a tall brown haired man made a speech. This man was the target. Seek and destroy…

The man was speaking about peace and how much the earth and colonies needed it. What a joke… Peace didn't exist… it was an illusion… there was only rule and war… She knew that just as well as the next person.

She was jerked out of her thoughts by a male voice on the other end of her headset, "Target acquired… Preparing."

"Affirmative," she whispered back readying her long-range gun just in case something went wrong. As she did so she heard another "affirmative," from her headset. Everything was ready. In a few seconds all hell would break loose.

"Fire in the hole," came the male voice suddenly as the man who was speaking suddenly went wide-eyed and collapsed to the ground in a heap. The people in the building let out screams of horror and other such things and the guards around the place began to look around for the culprit. Other guards went to the man's side but could do nothing for him… he was already dead.

"I think we've overstayed our welcome. I'll meet out outside," came the male voice once more.

"Affirmative," the young girl said. Thankfully, the young girl was in civilian clothing. It wasn't hard for her to just walk out of the place like any other person. With all the havoc no one even seemed to notice her.

(FLASH)

Shots began to fire and she shook her head clearing her thoughts again. Her ears rang and her teeth chattered but she kept going. She needed to get to Preventers HQ. She saw light up ahead. It was a window and it was her way out of there. She smirked slightly as she dashed right for the window. The men and woman following her gasped as she through herself into the window shattering it and fell towards the ground below. They ran to the window to see what had become of her but she was nowhere to be found.

Meanwhile at Preventers Headquarters the gundam pilots and other high-ranking members stood in a room investigating a tape they'd just received in the mail.

They watched as a blurry image of what looked like a man talked to them on the television screen, "I am sorry to be the bearer of bad news but I thought it right to warn you. With all these assassinations lately I fear the worst. I believe that the legendary Shadow Assassins are back in business. They use to be known as the greatest assassins on earth and the colonies. They where never seen, never caught. Some people believed it to be coincidental. That the assassinations where all done by different assassins but when officials investigated they found out some rather interesting things. These assassins were able to fire at such a far off distance that most people would never even be close to their target yet these assassins hit dead on. You may say that this too is a coincident. So did many other people but I assure you they are real… and they are dangerous. They were trained to seek and destroy their targets. They will not give up until they are either dead or their target is. There are three of them. Assassins 01, 02 and 03. Their only mission in life is to serve their organisation… Zeon."

"Zeon?!" Heero said going wide-eyed. Zeon had once been a strong organisation like Oz but Zeon had been far more forthcoming with their intentions then Oz and with good reason. They had fighters unlike any seen before. Some people said that they trained their fighters at a young age. Trained them to fight and win.

"On the disk I sent you is some information that I have gathered about these three. Be careful. They are very dangerous and masters of manipulation," the man said, "Good luck Preventers," with that the screen went blank.

"Who was that man and how did he get this information?" Heero asked narrowing his eyes slightly.

"It doesn't mater. What maters is what's on this disk," Lady Une said as she held up the disk the man had been talking about.

"Well lets see what it says then," Duo said.

"Right."


	8. The Rescue

Note: I don't own Gundam Wing!!! This message goes for the whole story... Thank you and don't forget to review! =^-^=****

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The Assassins' Lament 

**Chapter Eight: The Rescue**

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"I promise I'll find you Dorry," Trowa said as he slowly snuck through the halls of the Zeon base. The alarm was still sounding as he made his way towards the holding area. He knew that that was the place they would take her.

"Find them!" came a voice suddenly. Trowa narrowed his eyes. Several men ran down the hall. They ran right to the end of the hall and turned the corner.

"Morrons," Trowa mumbled as he let himself fall from his hiding spot on the ceiling and continued to head in the direction he was originally heading.

(FLASH)

"Be careful Triton… You're too small. You're gonna hurt yourself," a little girl said to an even younger boy who was climbing a tree. The two looked around the age of 5 or so. The little boy just ignored the girl and continued to climb. He wasn't doing that bad either for a child his age and soon enough he was sitting on the lowest branch of the tree looking down at the young girl, his sister.

"Told you I could do it Catherine," the boy said sticking out his tongue at her and laughing.

The little girl laughed back, "Well wait for me then. I'm coming up too," she said as she stepped over to the base of the tree and looked up.

"No you aren't little missy," a voice said as a man walked out from behind the tree and grabbed the girl.

"AHH!" the girl screamed.

"Ok you little magget… get down here and this little wench won't get hurt," the man said.

"Leave my sister alone!" the boy shouted as he jumped from the tree landing on his feet and hands.

The man immediately pushed the young Catherine to the ground and grabbed the boy Triton before he got the chance to get up, "Gotcha."

"Let me go!" he growled as he squirmed in the man's grasp.

"Shut up and behave… you wouldn't want your sister here to get hurt now would you?" the man whispered in Triton's ear. The boy immediately stopped moving and looked over to his sister. The man smirked and walked away from Catherine with an arm around her younger brother's waste dragging him along.

"Triton!" she yelled.

"Catherine, help me…" he cried. 

(FLASH)

"Now brat… here's your first test… Feed the lions," the man laughed as he pushed a five-year-old Triton into a hole in the floor of a dark room.

The boy quickly got up and looked around. It was dark save for the light coming from the small opening at the top of the pit. Realising his sight would do him no good he closed his eyes and stood perfectly still. He let his ears be his vision. He could hear the sounds of breathing but not the breathing of a man or woman but the deep growling breathing of a beast. He began to shake slightly as he heard something move. Something was walking towards him on four clawed feet. He opened his eyes at that moment and backed up into a corner.

"Remember boy… They are stupid beasts… They only attack because they sense your fear," the man said.

The boy didn't see that as much help, though he knew the man wasn't there to help him but only to train him. He watched the area where the feeble light came through and waited as a large beige creature stepped into it. A lion. Triton looked at the creature in fascination. It was a truly beautiful beast. He suddenly let his body relax and his breathing became normal again. The creature was soon inches from him. He looked into its eyes. He was no prey, he was not afraid, and he was not attacking… the lion would not harm him.

"What the heck? What did that kid do?" one of the other men above the pit asked.

"He did what he was told to do," the man who'd thrown him in there said.

Triton ignored the people up above and put out his hand to the lions flank. It was soft and warm to the touch. He stroked the creature lightly and it lied down beside him calmly.

"You aren't so freighting are you?" Triton asked with a slight smile.

"Ok… out of there now… We're finished here," his trainer said. Triton sighed and headed towards the light. As soon as he got there a pair of hands descended and grabbed him dragging him up.

(FLASH)

"It's time for us to leave here," Wolf said to his two companions, "We now know the truth. We can't go on living like this. We can't keep killing innocent people."

"We're with you all the way Wolf," Falcra nodded with a serious expression.

"They're sure to capture us again. Besides… What if someone on the other side finds out who we are? They'll kill us without a doubt," Cheetara explained.

"And what do you propose? Stay here and continue killing people proving that we are dangerous? We can't do that. Not now that we know what's really going on," Wolf explained.

"I… I'm afraid… What if something goes wrong?" Cheetara asked.

"I promise nothing will," Wolf replied, "We're going to get out of here."

"And then we'll be free at last," Falcra added.

"You're right… Let's get the hell out of here," Cheetara nodded.

"As you wish my lady," Wolf smirked as he pulled out a small device from his pocket.

"Where'd you get that Wolf?" Falcra asked going slightly wide-eyed.

"I borrowed it," he said as he walked up to the door of their "prison" and pressed the button on the device. The door opened slowly and the three sighed with relief when they saw that no one was outside.

"Let's get going. Only rule… Don't get caught," Cheetara said as she peeked into the hall to make sure no one was there then slowly crept through it making such a small amount of noise that it seemed as if she wasn't there. The others followed behind her being just as quiet. Wolf kept to the rear listening for any trouble that may have come.

(FLASH)

"You broke the rule Dorry… Your own rule… You let yourself get caught," Trowa said to himself as he ran down a hall. It was odd that the halls were all empty but he suspected that the reason was because he was expected. They wanted him to find her so that they would have him where they wanted him. Well he wasn't going to leave the time for them to capture him. The plan was find her and get the hell out before they were caught again. Simple and easy…

He quickly ran down the hall and stopped at a corner. He slowly peeked around the corner… two guards near the door of the holding area. They would be much trouble, however. He took a deep breath then stepped around the corner, "Looking for someone?" he asked the guards. The two guards looked at him for several seconds in confusion before quickly pulling out their guns and pointing them at him.

Trowa smirked slightly with a sigh as he backed up a step going around the corner. As he had done before he jumped up to the ceiling and held himself there as the two guards ran around the corner.

"Where'd he go?" one of the guards asked.

"Ough!" was the only reply he got from the other guard. He turned just in time to receive a fist in the face.

Trowa kneeled down and grabbed the key chain off of one of the guards. He then got up and headed back towards the door that the two guards had been guarding. He took a quick look around and then put one of the keys in the keyhole. It didn't work, so he tried another… and another… eventually he got to the right key and it opened the door. He took a deep breath as he grabbed his gun with his right hand and slowly opened the door with his left. He pointed the gun inside for fear of it being a trap and looked around.

"Trowa?" came a voice from the shadows of the room as a figure emerged.

"Dorothy," he sighed with relief.

(Meanwhile)

"Fuck no…" Duo whispered silently, "It can't be… It just can't be."

"I knew it," Heero growled as he glared at the large computer screen, "I should never have doubted myself like I did." The whole group was watching the screen with him. They looked at three figures. Two girls and a boy. The first girl had dark blue hair and light blue eyes. The second girl has light blond hair and light blue eyes like the first. The boy had brown hair that covered one eye and emerald green eyes. Hilde, Dorothy and Trowa… Three trusted Preventers… They were the enemy?

"It's got to be a lie," Quatre said looking away from the screen.

"If it's such a lie then where the hell are those three now?" Noin asked Quatre.

"I… I don't know," He replied.

"Their probably on another mission… assassinating someone," Wufei said watching the screen with his arms crossed.

"Whether or not this information is true we have to find these three. If they are the three assassins then they are dangerous… if not they will no doubt have others after them if this information has gotten out," Lady Une said.


	9. The Captured

Note: I don't own Gundam Wing!!! This message goes for the whole story... Thank you and don't forget to review! =^-^=****

****

The Assassins' Lament 

**Chapter Nine: The Captured**

****

"How could I be so stupid?" Cheetara growled to herself as she winced at the pain in her head, "I should have been more careful… They should never have been able to sneak up on me like that."

She was in a dark holding cell somewhere in the complex. Her hands were bound as well as her legs to keep her from trying to escape. She, of course, wasn't about to continue lying on the ground like a helpless little doll. She slowly pushed herself towards the wall then used it to as a support get to her feet. Once she was on her feet she hopped a little ways away from the wall. Once that was done, she jumped into the air bringing her arms under them and around to the front.

****

"That feels much better," she sighed, "Too bad these are cuffs and not rope."

She hopped over to the small window and looked out. She remembered this place as if she'd been here only yesterday. She could almost here the old church bell ringing.

(Flashback) 

"Keep running Quatre!" a young girl with blond hair shouted to a smaller boy who also had blond hair, "There coming closer!"

"I'm twying!" the little boy shouted back, "Ahh!" the little boy tripped fell to the ground. 

They were only about 5 years of age.

"Quatre!" the young girl shouted turning and running over to the little boy, "Get up we have to go," she said in a panicked voice.

"You're not going anywhere you little brats," came a voice as a man walked up and grabbed the two of them picking them up off the ground. They struggled as they were dragged back the way they'd come… back towards the white van. 

The little boy began to cry and he struggled to get free.

"Shut up you rugrat before I throw you off a bridge or something," the man said in an exasperated voice.

"You leave my brother alone you big dork!" the girl growled as she kicked him. Her little brother continued to whimper and sniffle as the two of them were dropped by the van.

"Which one do we take?" he asked his associate, a woman who'd just stepped out of the van and walked over.

"Take the girl… That little brat would be nothing but trouble. What a cry baby," the woman said rolling her eyes, "Besides… no one would expect a pretty little blond girl."

"Leave me alone!" the girl growled as the man went to pick her up and throw her in the van. She angrily kicked him in the ankle and ran off.

"Kids pretty fast," the man said not moving from his position.

"Come on back here little girl," the woman shouted out, "You wouldn't want you baby brother to get hurt now would ya?"

The man snickered as he saw the young girl stop in her tracks and look back. She looked to the ground biting her lip as the man calmly walked over taking her by the shoulder and leading her towards the van again. A tear dripped to the ground as she stepped past her brother without looking back and was lifted into the van. 

Little Quatre watched as the van drove off leaving him there all alone, "Dilia," he cried out.

(Flashback)

"Don't stop! Keep going!" Wolf shouted to the two from the back. It seemed as if they'd been running for hours, but they were still being pursued. Zeon wasn't going to give up until the three of them were captured again… or dead. 

"They're gaining… again! We need to find shelter. Somewhere to hide from them," Cheetara shouted back. 

"We're in the middle of nowhere. There is no shelter for miles," Falcra said as she continued to run.

They heard several shots being fired at them from the flying mobile suits. They quickly dodged and regrouped again. They were tiring fast but they knew if they stopped it was over. There was no room for rest… no room for mistakes. They all knew what would happen if they were caught… what could happen. The most severe would be torture… the least would be continuing where they left off… killing again. 

"I can't go anymore," Falcra whimpered falling to the ground.

The other two stopped and looked back at her but only for a second before they both ran over and lifted her up to her feet, "We're not leaving you behind. We get out together or we all get caught," Wolf said in a serious tone of voice. It seemed lately that that was the only tone of voice he ever used. 

Suddenly something fell over them… A net.

"No!" Cheetara shouted. 'This can't be happening,' she thought to herself. They'd come so far just to be dragged down again. She looked sadly over at Wolf and he took her hand holding it tightly. She nodded to him. It would be ok. He wasn't about to let anything happen to them.

"I don't want to go back," Falcra whimpered. 

"Hey… Come on now… Haven't you learnt anything threw all of this? Don't give them the satisfaction of seeing you cry," Wolf said with narrowed eyes and clenched fist as he looked up at the mobile suits that were surrounding them.

She nodded meekly and took a deep breath. 

Several of the mobile suit cockpits opened and men and women jumped out.

"Don't worry Falcra… This is far from over," Cheetara said also narrowing her eyes in contempt at the people surrounding them.

"Oh it's over alright," said a tall burly man just before he hit her across the head. Everything went blank.

(Flashback)

Cheetara opened her eyes and looked around. She was in the middle of a dark room. She had a metal collar around her neck with a thick chain that was attached to a metal loop on the floor. She ignored the degrading feeling it gave her as she continued to look around. She'd been here before… several times. This is where they were given their orders. She looked around for the others. They didn't seem to be there… she was alone. She bit her lip fearful of what might have happened to Them. Her thoughts were cut off, however, when the chair at the head of the room turned to face her. 

"Hello Cheetara. It's so good to see you again," the figure said in a calm voice, "You know that stunt the three of you pulled was very disappointing. I thought you believed in our cause. I thought you wanted to save the world as much as the rest of us… I suppose I was wrong."

"Save the world? If that's what you call saving the world then I don't want to be a part of it," she hissed.

"Come now… We're doing the right thing. Yes, we may need to kill off a few people but in the long run it will save millions from war, poverty, starvation, illness and so much more. Once the world and the colonies are one again we can work together to get rid of all those things," he replied.

"Bullshit!" she shouted trying to get up but being pulled down again by the collar, "All you want is power… Power over the entire human race."

"I was hoping you'd see things my way but I suppose we'll just have to do things the hard way," the man said as he threw something in her direction.

She looked at what he'd thrown. It was a small golden locket.

"Open it," he said in his calm voice.

Cheetara narrowed her eyes as she picked up the locket and opened it. Her eyes went wide at what she saw… It was a picture of her and her younger brother… Quatre.

"Take a long look my dear… If you don't cooperate then we'll just have to enlist help from someone else… or we could always just kill him," the man laughed.

"You leave him alone!" She shouted with fury as she, once again, tried to attack him being held down by the collar.

"Well then… I guess we have a deal," he said as he stood up and walked towards the door getting inches from her as if daring her to attack.

She said nothing knowing there was nothing that needed to be said. She looked over at his feet as he passed and held the locket tightly in her hands.

(Flashback)

"Quatre," Dorothy whispered to herself as she grabbed the locket pulling it over her neck. They'd been surprised when Zeon hadn't attacked their loved ones when they'd escaped the second time but it seemed the reason was because they hadn't really lost them. Zeon was always there… always watching over them… until they were needed again.

Suddenly the door began to open slowly. She watched the door as she backed up to the wall narrowing her eyes expecting trouble. A figure walked in holding a gun. Her eyes went wide as she recognised the figure.

"Trowa?" she whispered from the shadows as she walked towards the light coming from the door.

"Dorothy," Trowa sighed with relief.

(Meanwhile)

After "borrowing" a mobile suit from the Zeon base, Hilde headed towards the Preventer's Headquarters. She made it there in little time and headed for the cargo hold to drop off the suit. 

She jumped out of the suit, after shutting down the systems, and headed towards the door that would lead her into the main building.

"Don't move," came a voice suddenly.

Hilde narrowed her eyes and turned in the direction of the voice. There stood several figures. She recognised the one in front as Heero Yuy, "Heero, we have to round everyone up… It's an emergency."

"Yes it is… We've got a spy in our midst," Heero said with disgust.

"What?" she asked knowing he was speaking of her. His tone was angry and she could see his hand rested on his gun. Somehow they must have found out their secret… or at least hers. This wasn't good but she was on a mission and she'd do everything she could to relay her message to them.

"You're coming with us," Heero said as he took several steps towards her taking out his gun and pointing it at her.

"Heero… what's going on?" she asked in her most sincere voice. It was best to play dumb until she knew exactly what they knew.

"Don't play stupid with me. I know who you are… what you are. I can't believe we fell for your tricks," he said shaking his head with the disgusted look still visible.

"I didn't come here to play games, Heero. I came to warn you," she hissed back.

"A trap no doubt, or are you just going to draw us all together to kill us all… that is what you do best isn't it?" he said nodding to the men behind him. The men walked towards her, guns drawn.

"I am on your side," she said backing up a step.

"We'll see about that…" Heero said as the men reached her and grabbed her by the arms.

"I'm sorry," she whispered suddenly before elbowing one man, kicking another and punching several more. With Heero's troops out of commission she turned and ran.

Heero narrowed his eyes as he pointed his gun and fired.

The shot missed as Hilde jumped into the air coming down on her hands and rolling to a standing position once more and continuing her running. When she got outside she quickly jumped into a tree hiding herself from her pursuer. Heero eventually gave up and headed back inside.

"It's over," she whispered to herself, "We've reached the end and there's no turning back."


	10. The Fourth Assassin

Note: I don't own Gundam Wing!!! This message goes for the whole story... Thank you and don't forget to review! =^-^=****

****

The Assassins' Lament 

**Chapter Ten: The Fourth Assassin**

"Trowa?" Dorothy whispered from the shadows as she hopped towards the light coming from the door.

"Dorothy," Trowa sighed with relief.

Trowa then grabbed Dorothy's hands holding them up and fired a shot freeing her hands. He then fired at her legs freeing them as well, "Lets get out of here before they realise you're free. Hilde should have warned the Preventers by…"

She smiled wrapping her arms around him in a tight hug distracting Trowa from whatever he was going to say. She then nodded, "I'm right behind you."

Trowa walked to the entrance of the room and looked out, gun at the ready. When he was sure all was clear he stepped out of the room with Dorothy close behind. Dorothy grabbed a gun off of one of the fallen guards then they took off at a quiet run just as the alarms began to go off. They had somehow been informed of the escape. They two supposed that the Zeon had hidden cameras in the room or something.

As they rounded a corner two guards spotted them. Trowa, being in front, quickly jumped at the two guards kicking one and punching the other giving off very little noise in the process. They then continued running with Trowa still in the lead.

"Where are we going? This isn't the way to get out…" Dorothy suddenly realised. 

"I'm not leaving until I settle the score," Trowa replied narrowing his eyes and looking straight ahead.

Dorothy nodded, "I'm with you all the way." They three of them had been through a lot when they'd been in this place and the emotional scares never really healed. It had been so bad that Trowa seemed to have lost all emotion but the friendship of his two companions and his new found friends soon brought them back to the surface… somewhat. 

****

As the two walked Trowa looked to Dorothy and nodded. She nodded back and opened the brown pouch at her side and took out several circular devices, that were in fact, explosive devices. They placed them in various areas around the base where they would do the most damage without being seen.

"We better get going. We have less then thirty minutes before these things go off," Dorothy said looking to Trowa.

"You go. I'll meet you outside," he said in his usual serious tone. He narrowed his eyes… There was someone he had to see before he left. He had a score to settle.

"There is no way I'm leaving you here. We go together… one way or another," the blond smirked. In truth she was afraid of what he was going to do. Why he wanted to stay. She was afraid he was going to do something that would either get him killed or hurt… he might have seemed like the perfect soldier to some but she knew that he could be careless at times… When it came to Zeon he sometimes acted before thinking. She was the voice of reason and often had to bail him out of trouble.

"I can handle it, Cheetara," he said, "Go… Head back to the Preventers and wait for me. I'll be fine."

"No," she replied in her own calm serious voice. She crossed her arms and stopped, "What are you planning to do?"

"I just want to make sure this is the end… for good," Trowa answered, "I'm not leaving anything to chance this time."

"Well we'll tie up loose ends together then," Dorothy said then they both took off at a run towards the place they knew they would find the person they were looking for. 

Trowa looked at her calmly as they ran. A slight smile crossed his lips but soon disappeared as he concentrated on the task at hand.

They soon rounded a corner and stopped in their tracks. A young boy no older then 12 stood in front of them. He narrowed his eyes as he held up a gun, "This is as far as you go… traitors."

"And who's gonna stop us?" Dorothy asked with a smirk. This little kid didn't look like too much trouble. Was he all they had to defend themselves?

"Me…" he said in a serious tone of voice equal to that of Trowa.

Trowa clenched his teeth as his hand slowly went to the gun at his side. He'd learnt a long time ago that looks could be very deceiving. He was proof of it.

"I wouldn't even try zero one," the boy said, "By the time you get your gun I will have already put a bullet through your skull."

"You seem very sure of yourself kid," Dorothy said putting a hand on her hip.

"Why shouldn't I be?" he asked as he cocked his gun.

Trowa put a hand on Dorothy's shoulder before she got the chance to say anything else ,"Think about it Cheetara… Do you think Zeon would really just give up on the Shadow Project? And do you really think they'd send a child to fight us if they weren't positive that he was a fair match for us?"

Dorothy looked at him going wide-eyed then looked at the boy, "You're…"

"Shadow Assassin 04," he smirked as he fired the gun.

Trowa quickly pushed Dorothy aside as he dodged the bullet. He then brought out his gun and fired at the boy's hand knocking the gun out of it, "Listen here kid… You don't know what Zeon is all about… what they're after."

"They're trying to bring peace to the earth but people like you two traitors keep getting in their way," the boy growled as he looked over at his gun.

"I wouldn't even try zero four," Trowa said pointing his gun towards the youth, "Come with us and we'll explain everything."

"There is no way I'm going to be your hostage," he growls narrowing his eyes and clenching his fists.

Trowa shook his head and smirked, "We don't take hostages. Come with us of your own free will." 

The young boy looked at him with a slightly confused look, "Why would I do that?"

"You can't tell us you're happy here," Dorothy said calmly.

The boy looked to the ground for a few seconds before looking up at them and nodding, "I'll go with you… but keep in mind that if you try anything I won't have any reservations about killing you."

"We understand… Now come on… We need to get out of here… We've wasted way too much time already," Trowa said looking at his watch, "Looks like we're going to have to leave things to chance this time. There isn't enough time."

Dorothy nodded and the three of them headed towards the nearest exit. They'd nearly reached the exit when the boy spoke.

"Wait," he said suddenly, "We can't leave the others."

"Others?" Trowa asked.

"The other assassins… We can't leave them here," he said.

The two nodded, "Show us the way."

"This way," he said as he ran in a different direction then they had been going. He quickly brought out his gun as he ran and fired several shots as several soldiers rounded the corner. The soldiers gasped and soon lay on the ground in a heap with a pool of blood forming underneath them.

Dorothy and Trowa looked at each other then turned back to follow the boy. This would put him in danger and they both knew it. He was skilled but a life of running was no life for a child… assassin or not… but they also knew that a life of murder was even worse then a life of running.

The boy soon stopped at a door… after killing the two soldiers that were guarding it. Trowa and Dorothy were quite impressed with the young assassin to say the least. Dorothy took out the card she'd stolen from the entrance guard and slid it through the card hole… but nothing happened. She growled exasperated and knelt down beside one of the guards and began to go through his clothing looking for another card key. Trowa knelt beside the other doing the same.

"Hurry," the boy said calmly, "I think someone's coming."

Trowa soon pulled out the key card from the soldier and threw it to Dorothy. He then stood up and cocked his gun aiming it to the opposite side to which they'd come. 

Several seconds later, just after hearing a click from the door indicating it was open, five soldiers rounded the corner, weapons drawn. Dorothy quickly snuck into the room as Trowa and the young boy sent a barrage of bullets through the line of soldiers killing them all in seconds.

"Jeasus," came Dorothy's voice from the room.

Trowa lifted an eyebrow as he walked into the doorway and peered in. What he saw brought many unwanted memories to the surface. 


	11. Breakout

Note: I don't own Gundam Wing!!! This message goes for the whole story... Thank you and don't forget to review! =-=****

****

The Assassins' Lament 

**Chapter Eleven: Breakout**

 What looked the two assassins in the face were 9 pairs of eyes… the eyes of children no older then nine or ten and as young as three. Dorothy looked them over and counted. Four boys and five girls not including the young boy they'd just met.

Trowa narrowed his eyes then put a hand on Dorothy's shoulder, "No time to waste. We have to go now."

Dorothy nodded then turned to the children, "Follow us… We're taking you out of here… far away from this horrid place where you'll be safe."

'Hopefully,' Trowa thought as he stepped out of the doorway to let the children out while the other young assassin walked over to the corpses he'd just recently created and grabbed their guns. The young assassin walked back and passed the guns to some of the older children who nodded and cocked them ready to fire if needed.

One of the younger girls glanced over at 04 worriedly, "Why are we leaving with them, Alex?"

"Don't worry. They're friends," the boy said thought the words, 'I hope,' flashed through his mind.

"So that's your name then?" Dorothy asked looking at the boy who nodded.

Dorothy led the group as Trowa continued to watch their rear listening for any sound of coming footsteps. It seemed odd that they were meeting very little resistance, however, the reason for that was soon apparent as they rounded a corner and came face to face with over twenty Zeon soldiers all pointing weapons in their direction.

Immediately, the children with guns lifted their weapons and prepared to fire though they were clearly waiting for an order from either the two elder assassins or Alex, who was their team leader.

Trowa narrowed his eyes and turned just as a group of another fifteen or so soldiers came down the hallway behind them.

"We're surrounded," Trowa muttered as he pulled out a small round ball from the pouch at his side, "I knew these would come in handy."

Dorothy nodded as Trowa handed her a second round ball from his pouch. They nodded to each other and they pressed the small buttons on the balls and threw them towards the soldiers both in front of them and behind. Smoke began to spread from the balls and the soldiers gagged at the fumes and began to collapse.

"Piece-a-cake," Dorothy smirked, "Lets get out of here."

With that said, the group continued on their way, weary of another attack, but it never came. They soon made it out into the yard and over the fence.

"Is it me or was that way too easy?" Dorothy murmured quietly to Trowa so as to not worry the children.

Trowa nodded then waved them to follow him as they made their way back towards the city. All the while he kept thinking to himself, 'Zeon's up to something and we need to find out what it is. They wanted us to find these kids. They wanted us to rescue them… but why? What do they have planned?'

The group was soon on its way to preventers headquarters in hopes that Hilde had made it and relayed their warning.

"Wait," came a rushed whisper as they neared preventers HQ.

Dorothy glanced over and saw Hilde hiding in a tree, "What's wrong? Did you warn the others?"

Hilde bit her lip and shook her head, "I tried but they know… They know everything. They think we're still working for Zeon… We can't go back. We have to hide… there's no other way."

"There has to be a way to make them understand. We can't just run… Not when so many lives are in danger. Zeon's grown so much stronger then it was when we were a part of it. Who knows what damage it can do…" Trowa said.

"Ya but we don't even know what exactly they're planning… Everything's just too confusing," Dorothy said then glanced at Alex, "What can you tell us about their plans?"

Alex looked to the ground, "Nothing… They just give me names and pictures and tell me to get rid of them."

"Great time for them to wizen up," Dorothy growled.

"Maybe we should hide and come up with a plan. Let things cool off," Alex said.

"But what if Zeon does something in the meantime?" one of the other young assassins piped up.

"We'll just have to take that risk because there is nothing we can do right now if the preventers see us as the enemy," Trowa said, "We'll go to colony L3 for a while. I know it well enough. There's a large forested area there were we can hide."

"They!" came a voice suddenly. Trowa turned to see Wufei who looked rather furious. The black haired gundam pilot quickly pulled out his gun and fired at them, "Filthy traitors!"

"Think he's mad?" Dorothy questioned as she grabbed one of the smaller children and lifted her off the ground and ran with Hilde and the other children in tow.

Trowa pulled out his own gun and fired several shots at Wufei before turning and following behind his teammates.

Wufei chased after them for a while but soon lost them in the darkness of the night.

The group was soon on a shuttle to colony L3, in disguise of course. Trowa had brushed his ridiculously long bangs back and tied his hair in a ponytail at the back and put blue contacts into his eyes. Dorothy had died her hair jet-black and cut it slightly and put in greed contacts. Hilde had bleached her hair blond and wore brown contacts. The kids all wore ordinary clothing that children their ages would wear and didn't have to worry too much seeing as no one other then Zeon had really seen them as of yet.

Trowa sat quietly in his seat looking out the window at the stars and the endless darkness. When had darkness become his escape? He often found himself looking up at the night sky, loosing himself in the black abyss that was space. He closed his eyes for a second then opened them again as if trying to wake from the nightmare that was his life.

He was soon woken from his thoughts as Alex, who was sitting next to him, stood up and whispered, "I'm going to have a look around."

Trowa glanced at him and replied, "Alright, just don't be too long, we should be landing in about an hour."

Alex nodded then headed down the isles of the shuttle towards the front.

(Meanwhile)

In the cockpit of the shuttle the captain was quietly humming to himself when he heard a blip and a face appeared on the shuttles main screen.

"Captain, I am Lady Une of the Preventers. I am sad to inform you of a group of terrorists that may have found their way on one of the shuttles in order to escape our operatives. There are three older teenagers, two females and one male along with 10 children," the face of Lady Une said calmly to the captain, "I'm sending you the pictures of the three teens now."

The captain nodded slightly startled by the news that there could be wanted criminals on his ship.

The pictures came up on the screen and the captain examined them carefully, "They look familiar enough," the captain said as he remembered the passengers faces, "They look a wee bit different but that's them. There here alright."

"Good… just act as if nothing is wrong. We will have operatives waiting to take them when you land," Lady Une said calmly.

(Meanwhile)

Alex's eyes narrowed as he heard this. He'd been standing there the whole time. No one seemed to think it odd that a child would be wandering the shuttle so no one paid him any attention.

The boy quickly turned and headed back to the others, "They know we're here. I just heard the captain talking to some woman about us. They're going to be there when we land."

Hilde groaned slightly then nodded, "What now?"

"We head to the cargo hold… a few at a time… We still have 45 minutes before we land. We can make a run for it when they open the hold," Trowa said.

Dorothy nodded, "I'll take the first group."

She calmly took the lands of two of the children and wandered towards the back of the shuttle.

Ten minutes later Alex and three other children wandered off towards the back pretending to play tag.

After another ten minutes Hilde picked up two of the younger children who were pretending to cry and took them towards the back.

Trowa sighed, 'so far so good. No one seems to notice us leaving… yet.'

Ten minutes after Hilde's 'escape' Trowa took the last two children towards the back, both complaining that they needed to use the bathroom.

Trowa and the two children with him soon entered the cargo hold and met up with the others. Some of the young children seemed frightened and the two girls were trying their best to comfort them while the older ones looked on calmly, not seeming fazed by the unfolding events.

"Be ready," Trowa said as he took out his gun and quickly made sure it was fully loaded. The older children with guns also checked there guns followed by the two girls after they'd calmed the younger ones.

They soon felt the shuttle heading for a landing and prepared themselves for the inevitable fight and flight. Trowa and a few of the older children, including Alex, would be taking up the rear and holding the preventers off while the others escaped.

The shuttle landed and the group tensed, "Get ready," Trowa said calmly.

The second the shuttle door opened the group bolted with Trowa and his group pointing their guns at the workers. Hilde and Dorothy led their group of children out as fast as they could.

"Hey! Stop right there!" came a voice suddenly which indicated that they weren't quite fast enough.

The sounds of gunshots told the girls that Trowa and the others still had their backs and they continued to flee.

Trowa narrowed his eyes as he fired at the preventers, deliberately missing. The preventers took shelter behind the shuttle as they continued to fire.

Trowa and his group continued their barrage, while avoiding the shots from the preventers, and slowly backed up in the direction the girls had run.

When he felt they'd given the others enough time to get away, Trowa shouted to his group to retreat. They nodded and the group ran for it.

The preventers were quickly on their heels, still firing madly at them.

Trowa ushered his group off in the direction of the others then waited till the preventers could see him and bolted the other way. He was quickly rewarded by the sound of the preventers following close behind him.


	12. Taste Of Freedom

Note: I don't own Gundam Wing!!! This message goes for the whole story... Thank you and don't forget to review! =-=

Warning: I've decided not to do an alternate ending to this story. So I'd just like to warn you that the ending I've chosen it REALLY ANGSTY! So there IS death in future chapters.****

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The Assassins' Lament 

**Chapter Twelve: Taste Of Freedom**

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Trowa ran down hallways and past frantic people with the rather angry preventers still following. By now the others were long gone so all he had to do now was loose the preventers and head to their meeting place. His legs were beginning to ache but he'd learnt long ago to ignore physical pain. He kept running as a few more gunshots sounded through the area.

Soon enough, Trowa found himself in the building's parking garage. He smirked to himself as he dashed off into the darkness and jumped up onto the supports on the ceiling.

The two preventers came running through the parking area and quickly began to look around for him, guns still drawn.

"Where'd he go?" one of them said nervously obviously afraid the young assassin was going to jump them. He'd seriously thought about it but decided against it seeing as they were technically still on his side whether they knew it or not.

The two preventers soon left the area, sure that he'd already gotten away.

Trowa smirked as he jumped down and headed towards the exit.

With that done, the assassin was soon on his way to the forested area of the colony to meet up with his comrades.

The group looked over quickly from their hiding spots, the older children drawing their guns, as Trowa walked into sight. Trowa smirked and shook his head and the children lowered their guns.

Dorothy sighed, "Darn and I was hoping they'd shoot you too."

Trowa scowled at her playfully, "You're nice. And after I saved your life too."

Several of the younger children giggled and Hilde chuckled slightly.

Dorothy smirked, "Oh please. Those guys are such idiots they didn't even find the disk."

"Hmm?" Trowa murmured, "But they took your pouch."

Dorothy chuckled as she took the small disk out of her shirt, "Do you really think I'd risk putting it in my pouch?"

Trowa's face went slightly red and Hilde burst out laughing again.

"Anyways… follow me… I know the perfect spot for us to hide," Trowa said regaining his composure as he headed off into the trees.

The group followed behind the brown haired gundam pilot as he quickly untied his hair from the ponytail. He'd have to fix it up later though since he had no hair gel. (And we all know how much hair gel he must use to get his hair like that… lol)

They soon reached an area more thickly covered in trees with a mountain then the rest of the forest and Trowa waved them to follow him to the wall of the mountain where he pushed a rock aside to reveal a small hole just big enough for them to crawl through.

The others nodded as Hilde crawled in followed by the children then Dorothy and Trowa.

"It's so dark," one of the younger children whimpered hugging Hilde around the waist.

"Don't worry…" Trowa smiled as he reached over and touched something. Suddenly the cave lit up and the group looked stunned. Trowa chuckled slightly as he took his hand away from the small battery operated lamp above the hole from which they'd entered. It seemed that someone had chizzled out the rock to make platforms for various things including the lamp.

"Cool!" Alex said then cupped his hand over his mouth when he realized he was acting like a little kid.

"I found this cave when I lived on this colony and kind of made it like a second home after doing a little work on it. Makes a great hiding place if you don't want to be found," Trowa said as he looked around their new sanctuary.

"It's perfect," Dorothy said with a sigh, "Now maybe we can get some rest at last without waking up with a gun to our heads."

Trowa sighed, "We should still have someone keeping watch. I'll be outside, two shots, one after the other if there's trouble."

Dorothy sighed but nodded as Trowa crawled back out the hole and rolled the rock back in place to hide their little hiding place.

Trowa leaped into a nearby tree and sat down on a branch making himself as comfortable as he could.

When Hilde and the children were fast asleep, Dorothy snuck out of the little cave after rolling the rock away and creeped towards the tree were Trowa was.

"You should be asleep," Trowa said calmly seeming to know exactly who it was.

"Shush," Dorothy said as she leaped into the air and into the tree to join him. She sat down beside him and smiled, "I can't wait till this is all over."

"Neither can I," Trowa said calmly placing his hand on hers and squeezing it slightly.

Dorothy smiled and put her head on his shoulder, "I love you," she murmured as she closed her eyes.

Trowa smiled and gently kissed her forehead, "I love you too."

Dorothy soon fell asleep on Trowa's shoulder and he wrapped an arm around her to keep her from falling out of the tree. He gently stroked her hair with the other hand as he listened intently to the sounds of the night awaiting any danger that might cross their path.

The next day Alex and a few of the older children headed for the city to buy some supplies for the group. None of them had had a proper meal for a while since they'd had to leave for the shuttle cargo hold before the meals were passed out so they were thankful for a proper meal when the Alex and the others returned.

They'd spent a few nights there and soon it was Trowa's turn to take watch again. He quietly crawled out of the cave and covered it with the rock again heading for the same tree he'd watched from last time.

An hour or so had passed when he heard the sound of a branch breaking. He narrowed his eyes and looked around for a moment. "Who's there?" He asked pulling out his gun.

He heard someone behind him and turned quickly. A figure stood there, gun drawn. Trowa narrowed his eyes and held his gun to the figure, "I wouldn't try anything, whoever you are. By the time you think about pulling that trigger you'll already be dead," Trowa growled, "Who are you?"

The figure stepped forward, gun still drawn. It was Wufei. Trowa considered bringing his gun down but remembered what Hilde had said.

Wufei narrowed his eyes, "Filthy traitor. You're lucky we were told to bring you in alive."

Trowa closed his eyes for a second and then leapt into the air and past Wufei. He landed behind the other pilot and pointed his gun at his head. A second later, however, he heard someone else behind him. He turned quickly to see who it was but it was too late. He felt a sharp pain and collapsed to the ground dropping his gun.

"Lets go," Heero said as he put his gun away and glanced at his former companion in disgust.

"What about the others?" Wufei asked.

"Forget about them. He's their leader; he's the most important. We need to get him to the base before his traitorous companions find us. We'll send some men back to look for the others after," Heero stated calmly.

Wufei nodded as he slung the unconscious Trowa over his shoulder then followed Heero out of the forest and towards the shuttle that would bring them back to the earth.

Dorothy woke up in the morning and headed out pushing the rock out of the way. She looked around when she didn't immediately see Trowa, "Trowa? Where are you? This isn't funny."

Alex wandered out a minute or so later to a rather frantic Dorothy, "What is it? Where's Trowa?"

"I… I don't know," she said, "Trowa?!"

That's when Alex saw the gun lying near the tree where Trowa was keeping guard. He walked over and picked it up then glanced at Dorothy, "Someone got him. But which side?"

The two head back in and wake the others explaining what's happened.

"I bet it was the preventers. We know they know we're here and this isn't like Zeon to attack just one of us and leave the rest. Not that I see the preventers doing so either but it is more likely since they don't seem to know our true potential yet," Hilde said, "We better be careful. By now there are probably tons of soldiers out here looking for us."

Dorothy nodded, "Alex we need you to stay here and watch over the others. Be ready for a fight or flight situation if they find you. We're going to pay the preventers a visit."

Alex nodded, "Good luck."

The two girls nodded as they crept out and put the rock back in place.

Sure enough, Hilde was right, there were Preventer soldiers everywhere. At least new they could be sure of who had found Trowa.

After a while of shifting in and out of the trees and bushes the two girls made it out of the forest and towards the colonies docking bay. They stole a small shuttle and headed for earth.

(Meanwhile)

"So what do we do with him?" Duo asked glancing over at Lady Une at the head of the table. He looked solemn and couldn't stop thinking about his former companions. He really didn't want to believe that Trowa, and especially Hilde, could be the enemy.

"We'll see what information he's willing to give us then we'll leave him to the court system," Lady Une said calmly. She, just like the others in the room, still couldn't believe that three of their most trusted friends could be the enemy. She knew Trowa to be a skilled spy but an assassin working for Zeon? She couldn't bare to think about it.

"I say we get the information and kill him," Wufei said coldly. He didn't take kindly to traitors of any sort. He knew what it was like on the other side and he could never again forgive anyone else for doing what he'd done.

"Wufei! I can't believe you just said that!" Quatre shouted from across the table. There was no doubt in his mind that his three friends were innocent. He'd trust them all with his life.

"We must leave it to the people to decide their fate once they have all been captured. It is society in general that they have wronged and society should punish them," Heero said calmly. He, too, hated traitors but he also knew that he and his fellow preventers weren't the only people the three assassins had betrayed.

Relena closed her eyes as she listened to this. Another war was the last thing she wanted. She really wasn't sure what to do anymore.

Noin and Sally both sat quietly listening to the others argue. Neither wanted to have to make the choice of what would happen to the three.


	13. Thine Enemy, Thine Friend

Note: I don't own Gundam Wing!!! This message goes for the whole story... Thank you and don't forget to review! -****

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The Assassins' Lament 

**Chapter Thirteen: Thine Enemy, Thine Friend**

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Trowa sat quietly on the bed in the cell with his arms crossed staring at the wall. How had things gone so wrong? He sighed to himself and hoped the others were safe. He had a feeling Zeon had something to do with everything that was happening between them and the preventers. What lies had they told them?

His thoughts were lost, however, when the door to the cell opened and a blond gundam pilot walked in, "Hey Trowa. You ok?"

Trowa looked over at the blond, he couldn't quite believe what he'd just said. He looked away for a moment then sighed, "Quatre, I need you to do me a favour."

Quatre nodded and walked over to sit next to his former comrad, "Anything."

Trowa nodded and lifted his hands to remove the necklace that hung hidden under his shirt. He brought it out and handed it to Quatre, "I need you to bring this to Cathrine. Tell her I'm sorry."

Quatre looked at him sadly knowing his friend had lost hope, "Ok. And don't worry. This'll all work out I'm sure of it."

With the Quatre got up and headed out taking one last look at his friend before letting the guard close the cell door again.

Meanwhile, Dorothy and Hilde had made their way back to earth and were currently heading for the Preventer's headquarters. They talked through the communicators in the helmet's of their gundams as they drove.

"I just have this feeling that things are going to turn out really bad," Hilde said sadly, "What if we're too late? What if they've killed him?" She was worried sick about Trowa. Sure he was strong and could take care of himself but the preventers knew him and what he was capable of and she knew that Trowa wouldn't do anything to hurt any of them whether or not they were willing to hurt him. All three of them knew that the preventers were probably the only ones that would be able to stop Zeon… If only they'd let them help.

"If that was all they wanted to do they would have done it back on the colony. No… they want information probably… and to lead us back so they can arrest us as well," Dorothy said, "It might be a trap but there is no way I'm leaving Trowa to them." She was worried to the point of shaking slightly. Zeon had always tried to teach them not to care… To hold back their emotions… but no matter what Zeon did they couldn't take away the feelings the three of them had for each other. They were friends… family… and there was nothing they'd be able to do to take that away from them.

"You're right," Hilde said with a sigh, "Do you still have the disk. Maybe if we give it to them they'll believe that we're trying to help them."

"Yes but I don't think even that will get rid of the knowledge Zeon must have given them," Dorothy said calmly, "They'll never trust us again."

Back in the cell, Trowa was staring at the wall again. It had been over an hour since Quatre had left and he couldn't stand waiting to find out what was going to happen from here. Thankfully, his question was answered as he heard footsteps approaching from outside.

"Hello Trowa," Lady Une said as a guard opened the door and let her and Noin into the cell. Noin didn't look too happy and kept on guard just in case he tried something.

"Lady Une," Trowa nodded calmly looking over to her through the corner of his eye. Either they were here to tell him what would become of him now, that they'd caught the others, or try to get information from him. He wouldn't lie to them… not anymore. Maybe if he told them the truth then they'd trust him again.

Lady Une watched him for a few moments wondering what he was thinking about. She glanced over at Noin who didn't seem sure of what to believe at that moment.

Lady Une sighed, I was time to ask the question. Deep inside she hoped he'd say no but she knew that if he did then she wouldn't believe him, "Are you or are you not one of the legendary Shadow Assassins?"

Trowa closed his eyes for a moment. He hadn't expected her to be so blunt. It was obvious that Zeon had given them the information. 'So they must believe we're still working for Zeon,' he thought to himself and clenched his fists. He'd promised himself he wouldn't lie and he'd keep that promise, "Yes…"

Both Une and Noin looked shocked at Trowa's confession and Lady Une turned and put a hand on her forehead for a moment taking a deep breath. They'd hoped that it had been a lie… That someone was just trying to pull the 'team' apart but it was obvious that they were wrong.

"Why?" Lady Une asked turning back to look at the former gundam pilot.

"Because that's what I was trained to be," he said calmly.

"What was your objective then? Why did they have you infiltrate our organization?" Noin said with a slight growl.

Trowa was about to answer when there was a rather loud bang. The two women looked startled while Trowa clenched his fists. It was obvious to him that it was the girls and he'd hoped they wouldn't try anything to get him out of there but he knew there was no stopping them from trying.

Lady Une and Noin looked at each other for a moment just as another guard came up, "We're being attacked by two gundams. Our own gundam pilots are heading out to try and stop them but the pilots are very skilled."

'What are they thinking?,' Trowa cursed to himself. That was just it though. If they'd brought their gundams then they couldn't have been thinking. They were going to get themselves killed.

"What are your orders?" the guard asked.

"Send out all moble suit pilots. Shoot to kill," Noin said.

Trowa clenched his fists at this and tried to keep from attacking her right there. How could she say that? They'd been her friends, her companions, how could she just tell them to kill them like that?

Noin turned to glare at him for a moment then turned to follow Lady Une out.

"If only she knew," he whispered to himself as the cell door began to close again. He narrowed his eyes and grabbed the watch that they'd left with him and threw it at crack in the door to keep it open. He smirked to himself slightly as he listened carefully at the women's fading footsteps.

Once the footsteps died away, Trowa got up and walked quietly to the door of the cell. In a flash he'd thrown the door open and knocked out the guard. He then knelt down and the guard's gun and his watch, which doubled as a communicator for short distances. He then dragged the guard into the cell and left him there making sure the door was locked.

He headed down the hallway, gun cocked and ready to defend him if needed. He could hear the sounds of the moble suits fighting outside. The girls might be foolish for coming to rescue him but they made a wonderful distraction.

Meanwhile, outside, the girls were busy fending off preventer moble suits and the gundams of Duo and Wufei. They were currently being pushed back as the preventers surrounded them.

"Damn it," Dorothy cursed as she knocked the legs out from under an attacking moble suit. Her gundam, Majestic, was made for close combat, with an energy saber and sharp points on the feet, knees and elbows, which she was extremely thankful for at this moment as she sliced the chest of another suit.

Hilde on the other hand, was stuck as her gundam, Shadowarcher, was made to fight at a distance. Her gundam had various missiles and such along with an energy crossbow on each arm. She was struggling to attack at such a close distance but managed to damage a few moble suits.

Duo, who was rather furious now, flew his gundam overtop of the fighting so that he was now behind the two girl's gundams. With a furious swipe of his energy scythe he made a large gash down Majectic's back leaving it sparking.

Dorothy growled as she wiped her gundam around and locked her sword with Duo's scythe. With her attention sowly on Deathscythe, the other moble suits began to move closer, aiming their weapons at Shadowarcher, who was defenceless.

Wufei growled as he sent his long arm at Shadowarcher racking the fang like points across the gundam's left arm just inches from the crossbow. The two new gashes on Hilde's gundam sparked slightly and she sighed as she attempted to attack Wufei's gundam to no avail.

"Time for drastic measures," Dorothy murmured over the headset. They were in a tight situation with moble suits all around them. If they tried to fly away they'd be destroyed, if they continued like they were they'd be forced to surrender or be destroyed, so the best course of action was to catch them off guard.

Hilde tensed slightly at the words, understanding what her partner meant. It was time to abandon the gundams… and have them self-destruct. That would, at least, decrease the number of opposing moble suits.

At the same time, both girls opened the cockpit door of their gundam. The preventers, thinking they were surrendering, didn't fire at them. Both girls smirked at this as they leapt into the air, landed and dashed threw the wall of moble suits.

Once they felt they were far enough, both girls pressed the self-destruction buttons in their hands simultaneously. The opposing gundams, which had all turned to shoot or run after the two, were blown forwards, if not blown apart, by the blast. Several of the moble suits toppled to the ground causing the earth to shake and a cloud of dust to form.


End file.
